Odobenidae

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title: "Odobenidae" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["pinnipeds", "mammal-families", "odobenids", "taxa-named-by-joel-asaph-allen", "extant-miocene-first-appearances"] description: "Seal family which includes the walrus" topic_path: "general/pinnipeds" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odobenidae" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Seal family which includes the walrus ::

| name = Odobenidae | fossil_range = Middle Miocene to present | image = 7 Walross 1999.jpg | taxon = Odobenidae | authority = Allen, 1880 | subdivision_ranks = Genera | subdivision = Odobenus (walrus)

(see text for extinct genera)

Odobenidae is a family of pinnipeds, of which the only extant species is the walrus (Odobenus rosmarus). In the past, however, the group was much more diverse, and includes more than a dozen fossil genera.

Taxonomy

All genera except Odobenus are extinct.

• †Archaeodobenus
• †Prototaria
• †Proneotherium
• †Nanodobenus
• †Neotherium
• †Imagotaria
• †Kamtschatarctos
• †Pelagiarctos
• †Pontolis
• †Pseudotaria
• †Titanotaria
• Clade Neodobenia
  • †Gomphotaria
  • Subfamily Dusignathinae
    • †Dusignathus
  • Subfamily Odobeninae
    • †Aivukus
    • †Ontocetus
    • †Pliopedia
    • †Protodobenus
    • †Valenictus
    • Odobenus

In re-analyzing Pelagiarctos, Boessenecker et al. (2013) proposed the phylogenetic relationships of Odobenidae as follows (this analysis excluded Archaeodobenus, Titanotaria, Nanodobenus, and Pliopedia; and included Enaliarctos, Pteronarctos, Allodesmus, Desmatophoca, Callorhinus, Monachus, and Erignathus):{{clade| style=width:800px; |1={{clade |1=Enaliarctos emlongi † |2={{clade |1=Pteronarctos goedertae † |2={{clade |label1=Desmatophocidae |1={{clade |1=Allodesmus gracilis † |2=Desmatophoca oregonensis † |label2=Otariidae |2=Callorhinus ursinus |label3=Phocidae |3={{clade |1=Monachus monachus |2=Erignathus barbatus |label4=Imagotariinae |4={{clade |1=Prototaria primigenia † |2={{clade |1=Proneotherium regenningi † |2={{clade |1=Neotherium mirum † |2=Kamtschatarctos sinelnikovae † |3={{clade |1=Pseudotaria muramotoi † |2={{clade |1={{clade |1=Pelagiarctos sp. † |2=Imagotaria downsi † |2={{clade |1=Pontolis magnus † |2={{clade |label1=Dusignathinae |1={{clade |1=Dusignathus santacruzensis † |2=Gomphotaria pugnax † |3=Dusignathus seftoni † |label2=Odobeninae |2={{clade |1=Aivukus cedrosensis † |2={{clade |1=Protodobenus japonicus † |2={{clade |1=Ontocetus † |2={{clade |1=Valenictus chulavistensis † |2=Odobenus rosmarus

References

References

1. (December 2005). "Marine Mammals: Evolutionary Biology". Elsevier/Academic Press.
2. (2018). "A new tuskless walrus from the Miocene of Orange County, California, with comments on the diversity and taxonomy of odobenids". PeerJ.
3. (2013-01-16). "A reevaluation of the morphology, paleoecology, and phylogenetic relationships of the enigmatic walrus Pelagiarctos". PLOS ONE.

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